T-Shirt and shorts weather here yesterday! We hit 22° (72F) in the afternoon and i was too busy to record some videos of Mr Snotty taking a bath, the Momma-Duck Shed clean-out or the ducknagers trailing me, asking for treats.
So here is a video of them from Thursday afternoon, when they...
Preparations for the first Winter Attach tonight are done:
Kale and cabbage harvested.
Momma Duck Shack re-stocked with fresh straw.
Duck House re-stocked with fresh straw.
Bee-Hive re-stocked with syrup, entrance reducer and covered with tarp.
Patio insulated.
Everything loose secured...
I definitely need to test samples of my soil. Usually loamy soil is already alkaline, so lime would be a bad idea, but with all the ≫Duck Gold≪ applied the PH may have changed...
Very interesting!
I have not attempted to collect the seeds, but as it is from the wider buckwheat family, those may turn out to be a tasty addition to my self-baked bread…
Okay, Lens and Gemini were able to identify the weed as »Persicaria longiseta«, in invasive species from Asia.
Utterly useless here, offers noting to the bees or the ducks, not even useful as bedding...It died during the first frost but managed to suppress the grass and everything else while it...
I don't have a photo, and yes Google Lens identified it as one of the most invasive weeds, worse than Kudzu. It has take over most of my "gras" around the house, because i stopped mowing due to drought conditions. And now, i assume it has died because we had the first frost this night...
I grow some "weeds" on purpose as cover crop and dig them under in early spring. But what we got here over the last couple of years is just bad, its a grass like plant with small purple flowers that outgrows everything. The grass is dying due to drought that stuff takes over and covers...
:lau "smother" something into that soil would require explosives 💣.
I have started to cover that area with woodchips, but its a slow process and the weeds enjoy the new soil too much.
Thank you very much for the rapid response!
I have not (yet) tested my soil, outside of the cultivated beds its ≫West Virginia Concrete≪ - a mix of red/yellow loam with plenty of rocks.
I assume the droughts we had during the past years were the reasons why my legumes failed so miserably. I need...
So, fodder peas? I have tried to grow peas and beans here, the peas (sweet peas) sprouted, grew two or three leaves then died. Same with the beans, except a handful of green beans which I used for a pot of green bean soup.
No idea if I do something wrong or the soil isn't good for legumes or the...